LIKE DR WHO, THE CRACKS JUST WON'T GO AWAY

It is difficult to be anything other than disturbed by the enforced resignation of David Laws due to the revelations of the Daily Telegraph, a strong supporter of the Conservatives since time began and a truculent critic of the new coalition.

There is no question that Laws messed up and if it had been a Labour or Tory MP who had been exposed in this situation many Lib Dems would have joined the chorus baying for their blood but in the light of the antipathy being expressed towards the new coalition by numerous Tory leaning correspondents it raises questions.

It is of course a tremendous shame both personally and for the Lib Dems as David Laws has tremendous ability and he suited the role of Chief Secretary as few others could.

If we want to know how long this coalition will last we perhaps need to consider a couple of fundamental issues, such as whether the Torygraph and its ilk are planning more such revelations and who will be drafted in to fill the fifth LD place. Charles Kennedy for Scotland, anyone?

Of course it may strengthen the resolve of the members of the government and change the relationship between senior members and the more unpleasant elements of the Tory press.

Perhaps the fundamental question which will define the success or failure of the coalition is how much authority David Cameron has within his own party.

WHOOPS, THAT VEIL HAS FALLEN OFF AGAIN

Fascinating to hear an interview with Tory Cabinet Minister Philip Hammond this morning on the Today programme. He spoke cautiously as you would expect a newly installed government to do but one comment made me stop and think. When asked about the spending review and the cuts to come across government Hammond replied that he didn't know what David Laws had in mind. Not George Osborne, you understand, but Lib Dem David Laws.

Now this either means that David Laws has been given unimagined powers to control public finances to relieve Osborne of tasks which might be too much for him or it may mean that the Tories are already putting as much blame on to their supposed LD colleagues as they can, perhaps with an eye on a future election.

I shall listen very carefully to future interviews with Tory ministers

WHY THE COALITION IS A GOOD THING

Because Melanie Phillips of the Daily Mail is spluttering with indignation and railing against it on BBC1's Question Time. That is endorsement enough for me.

SOMETHING REALLY GOOD TO COME OUT OF THE ELECTION

When I was young I had a good friend with whom I would argue endlessly about politics. We were known at school for this and it became a bit of a spectator sport. At the time I lived in a Tory household with the Daily Hate delivered every day and Margaret Thatcher bestriding the stage so I was not surprisingly a Tory. My friend was Labour and we would go at it like cage fighters day in, day out, to our great enjoyment and the general amusement of our friends.

I grew up and moved into the light, becoming a Liberal in 1987 and then joining the Lib Dems in 1990, after a very brief period in, ahem, another party which used a rose as its symbol. My friend continued to be Labour and still is but our conversations about politics dwindled as we were simply less polarised.

Then came Tony 'I'll say anything' Blair who ushered in the New Labour project and all those mad old socialists who used to enliven TV and radio debates as they bemoaned the plight of the working classes from their Hampstead piles seemed to fade away. They had got a Labour government but not quite the one they had hoped for, yet still most of them kept mum as they kept a grudging faith and hoped against all hope that a glimmer of that old socialist zeal would emerge like a chink of light from within the deceptive TARDIS that was the New Labour project.

Then came Gordon Brown, kind of an old Labour lag but one intimately tied up with the New Labour project so he had to try to carry on with all the blather of his predecessor, pleasing neither himself, his party or his country. On May 6th the verdict was delivered and no one won but Gordon definitely lost. After a few days Gordon's pain was relieved and he was allowed to slope off to his roots to rediscover his mojo or whatever he had left behind when he signed his deal with the devil way back in 1994.

And that's where the story brightens, for out of the blue my old friend sent me an e-mail deriding the Lib Dems for the coalition and asserting amusingly that I had always been a Tory. I of course responded in kind and it was if the years had fallen away. We damned each other, we condemned our respective parties and we attacked the other one for his views. It was as refreshing as a cold shower.

For that, dear reader, is perhaps one of the most surprising outcomes of this enthralling political drama. Old Labour is back with a vengeance, like a slightly racy uncle who is a bit old fashioned in his views but who nevertheless enlivens any family gathering. I for one welcome it with open arms, so here's to debate based on principles and real differences, which the new Tories have not quite managed to offer. Here's to Old Labour. Welcome back!

IF YOU VOTED LIBERAL DEMOCRAT BE ASSURED THAT YOUR VOTE REALLY DID COUNT

If you supported me in the General Election and you are feeling uneasy with the news that the Liberal Democrats are considering whether to enter into a formal coalition with the Conservatives, may I reassure you that your vote in Henley was important and not wasted.

Firstly, your support contributed to the overall number of votes for Liberal Democrats across Britain being recorded as nearly 6.8m. That figure compares to 8.6m for Labour and 10.7m for the Conservatives. The next highest vote tally was 168,000 for the Democratic Unionists. Your support means that the Liberal Democrats have been taken more seriously this time than they have for decades.

Secondly, Nick Clegg and the Liberal Democrat negotiating team have been involved in detailed talks with the Conservatives to ensure that they can deliver Liberal Democrat policies in government. That is no mean achievement for a party which has been in opposition since the 1920s. In the coming months and years, I hope we will see Liberal Democrat priorities coming about, not just being talked about.

Thirdly, your vote ensured that the Liberal Democrat remain the only challengers to the Conservatives in Henley. You can rest assured that Henley Liberal Democrats will continue to work for your support and to deliver Liberal Democrat success in south east Oxfordshire. We will still challenge the Conservatives locally and we will argue for Liberal Democrat principles and values at every level of government but we will respect the co-operation which I hope will be established nationally to provide an effective government.

Please be assured that the Liberal Democrats will fight every step of the way for our beliefs and values and we will seek to earn and retain your support throughout this fascinating and potentially challenging period in British politics. And at the next election we will robustly challenge all the other parties, outlining Liberal Democrat policies and fighting for your support to ensure that we can continue to work towards our fundamental goal of a fairer, more equal society.

DO WE NEED VOTING REFORM? A READER WRITES

I was asked to do an 'op ed' piece for the local newspaper on whether we need voting reform in 250 words. Well, 250 words is never going to cover what could be a PhD. thesis but this is what I submitted.

The simple answer is yes. 

The newly formed coalition government of Britain is an anomaly because it can claim the support of more than 50% of British voters.  Such an outcome does not normally happen under our electoral system.

In 2005 the Labour government took office with 37% of the votes cast, which is a pretty normal result for Britain.  What that meant in practice was that for the past five years the views of 63% of the population who voted were ignored as Labour ruled alone.  If you also remember that only 61% of people voted in 2005 that means that the Labour government had the support of fewer than a third of voters overall. Two thirds of British voters were simply not listened to.

Locally, the system means that in most constituencies, like Henley, the winner can be elected with just a third of votes, so that the views of two thirds of voters are ignored.

Such a result just isn't fair.  Our system should deliver a Parliament which reflects the range of views in our country.  If we had a fairer electoral system the numbers of MPs in the House of Commons would better match the votes cast for each party.  That would mean that we would have more Green MPs, some UKIP MPs - and yes, some BNP MPs.  A proportional system might deliver some unpleasant results like this but they could be addressed in the design of a new system.

A fairer voting system may lead to more power sharing but it is democratic. As the new Conservative Prime Minister has demonstrated, politicians adapt to new realities remarkably quickly. This year we have a majority government. Under a fairer voting system we could have a majority government every time.

HERE COMES THE HANGOVER

The mood music now seems to be hardening in favour of the Tories.

I have just googled 'abyss' as I wanted one to stare into but sadly Google let me down. I will just have to imagine one instead.